


Just Some Italian Teens In Love

by teen_content_queen



Series: Just Some Italian Teens In Love [1]
Category: SKAM (Italy), SKAM (Italy) RPF, Skam Italia
Genre: F/M, Fluff, M/M, Multi, Not Canon Compliant, Post Season 3, Post-Canon, cute couples being cute
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-27
Updated: 2020-02-15
Packaged: 2020-05-20 13:34:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,275
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19377751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teen_content_queen/pseuds/teen_content_queen
Summary: It's my first fic. Enjoy.We pick up with our favorite Italian teenagers a few months after Season 3 ends, at the end of September.Since we don't know the name of Sana's love interest in the canon, I'm going with Yousef as an homage.*these are more one-shots and drabbles that all string together but don't rely on each other for plot - feel free to read whatever chapters you want*





	1. Double Date

**Author's Note:**

> It's my first fic. Enjoy.
> 
> We pick up with our favorite Italian teenagers a few months after Season 3 ends, at the end of September. 
> 
> Since we don't know the name of Sana's love interest in the canon, I'm going with Yousef as an homage.
> 
> *these are more one-shots and drabbles that all string together but don't rely on each other for plot - feel free to read whatever chapters you want*

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ele and Edo go on a double date with Marti and Nico...to spy on their friends' dates.

The bustling city buzzed around Eleonora, the lights above her head swaying in the soft fall night breeze. The sweet smell of hot cocoa drifted towards her as she picked up her mug, heavy enough that she needed both hands to hold it. Steam from the drink danced in front of her eyes, but she didn’t notice it. She was focused on something else. 

Across the outdoor café, she watched Sana and Yousef giggling about something. It was dark, but the twinkling fairy lights above the patio cast enough of a glow that Ele could make out the slightest hint of a blush on Sana’s cheeks. Sana, who for so long had scoffed at their relationships, and who had told Eva to break up with Gio just as they were all getting to know each other. Ele had the suspicion that Sana wouldn’t be giving anyone that advice these days. 

Ele’s focus was pulled from Sana when she felt a hand slip into hers, warm from his own drink. She turned to the curly haired boy sitting next to her and squeezed his hand. 

“Everything okay?” She asked. He’d been gone for a few minutes now, a phone call from Fede pulling him away from their table. 

“All good. Fede needed girl advice. Apparently, he’s at a party and she’s very pretty.” 

Ele laughed. 

“What time is it there?” 

Edo checked his phone and did the mental math. 

“Mid-afternoon. I think he said something about a football game.” 

Ele laughed again. The image of Fede in the middle of New York screaming about an American game felt so far away from the relative calm of the café. 

“You’re missing football games to be here.”

She gestured around to the café, full of people drinking espresso and talking. The ends of lit cigarettes flickered like fireflies around them in the dark.  

For a moment, she regretted bringing it up. Edo swore to her that he hadn’t stayed in Rome for her, that after everything last year, he decided Cornell wasn’t right for him. But she wasn’t sure she believed him, and sometimes she mourned the life he could have had if he’d gone on his world adventure.  

“I’m not missing anything.” He said softly, leaning in to kiss her.

“A zozzoni!” a voice yelled across the table. Ele laughed into the kiss and pulled away.

“You two have been making out for the last five minutes and I can’t kiss my girlfriend?” Edo whined, throwing a glare at Martino, who sat across from them, eyes wide and lips full from kissing Niccolo, whose ghostly white face was spotted with pink cheeks. Eleonora couldn’t decide if he was blushing from Edo’s teasing or just flushed from kissing. Marti buried his head in Nico’s neck and Nico wrapped a protective arm around him. 

“Ci dispiace.” Nico offered, his laugh bouncing off the cobblestones.

Ele smiled wide, and she could feel Edo’s hand relax in hers. She pulled their hands from the table top, letting their tangled fingers instead rest on her lap, covering his hand in both of hers now, stroking senseless patterns into the rough skin across his knuckles. 

She let her eyes drift back to Sana and Yousef. She noticed him lean close to Sana’s ear, whispering something. Sana went rigid as he did and relaxed as a smile crossed her face. 

Ele found it amusing, seeing her like this. Sana was not the one in the group to be afraid of anything. When those girls ambushed Eva two years ago, Sana was the first to fight back, using her notebook as a weapon. Now here she was, on “not a date” with Yousef, so tense that Ele could feel her anxiety all the way across the patio. 

“It looks like it’s going well.” Edo whispered. 

Ele brought her attention back to the group and Edo gave a small head nod. Marti and Nico perked up too. 

“What’s happening?” Marti whispered. 

“He’s making her laugh.”  
“But is she laughing at him or with him?” Nico quipped. That made the whole table chuckle a little. 

“He seems to be able to handle her.” Ele added. “I’ve never seen her this…”

“Nervous?” Edo offered. Ele nodded. 

“How’s it going behind us?” Ele asked, eyes on Marti and Nico now. Marti glanced behind Ele’s head, to where Ele had seen her red headed best friend sitting when she arrived. Eva hadn’t noticed her though, too entranced by Giovanni, who was talking animatedly about some encountered he’d had at the old swimming pool he and his friends had converted into their own skate park. 

“I want to look…” Edo said, about to turn around.

“Wait.” Marti said, too loudly. They all froze, trying not to attract attention from either end of the patio. 

Neither Eva nor Sana knew they were there, and that’s the way they wanted it. When they arranged this double date, one of many they’d had since Ele and Edo had gotten together, Ele may or may not have suggested that they spy on their friends. Nico had agreed far too quickly while Marti took some convincing. He, rightly so, did not want to intervene in Eva and Gio’s relationship more than he already had. But when Edo agreed with Ele and Nico, Martino was forced by majority rules to agree to go along with it. Now they were trying not to blow their cover. 

Ele looked over at Sana, but she was still too caught up in Yousef to notice the outburst. Ele relaxed slightly, looking back at Martino, who made a big show of finally letting out a breath. 

“I think we’re okay now.” 

Niccolo gave him a small shove. 

“No thanks to you.” 

“I’m sorry.” Marti said with a sly smile and Nico rolled his eyes, giving him a kiss on the cheek before Nico turned his attention back to Eva and Gio.

“Oh, that’s cute.” Nico purred. Ele pushed down the impulse to turn to look.

“What’s happening?” Edo asked quickly. Ele chuckled a little at his excitement. At first, he’d been very blasé about their whole operation, only agreeing because he was always agreeing with whatever Ele asked him to do, with the exception of washing dishes because he didn’t have the patience for it. Now he was as invested in the two dates as the rest of them. 

“Gio just wiped some foam from Eva’s nose with his thumb. Very romantic.” Nico said.

Edo smiled. 

“What did Gio say when you asked him about the date?” Ele asked. All Eva had told her was that she was meeting up with Gio “since everyone else had plans tonight.” 

“He didn’t say much…” Marti offered.

“That’s a lie.” Nico countered, giving Marti a look.

“He asked Eva, Marti and I to hang out and then when Eva said yes, he texted Marti and I to uninvite us.”

Edo laughed, curls bouncing across his forehead. 

“The love wizard.” Marti said softly with a laugh. 

By now, Ele had heard the story of Gio helping Marti with Nico in the early days. Sometimes when he was drunk, Gio liked to insist that he was the reason they got together. 

“Do you think he’s going to make a move tonight?” Edo asked. 

“If he doesn’t, he’s an idiot.” Nico said. 

“I know Eva wants him to.” Ele offered, almost accidentally. 

She didn’t usually give the boys much insight into the girl squad’s inner workings. There were things that needed to stay just between them, even though the two groups had blended together past the point of really being separate anymore. But she’d already said it and couldn’t take it back. The boys looked at her expectedly. 

“She’s been talking about him more lately. And now that the Argentinian is out of the picture…”

“That was never anything more than a rebound anyway.” Marti said. He and Ele exchanged a look of understanding, both aware that they were trading sensitive secrets. 

“Eva wore his favorite dress. And a light gloss instead of lipstick…because well…”

“Lipstick stains everyone.” Edo said knowingly, looking at his girlfriend.

 Nico laughed as Ele smiled, guilty, thinking of more than one shirt of Edo’s she’d ruined with the deep burgundy lipstick she loved so much. Although, Ele was more horrified by the amount of lipstick she had run through from all of the reapplying she needed to do. She had all but given up on wearing it whenever she was going to be spending time with Edo. 

She leaned over now and gave him a soft kiss, ignoring Marti’s playful groan. 

She could feel Edo smiling into the kiss, probably enjoying the attention from the other boys who’d grown into some of his best friends. 

Ele had noticed recently that Edo was different with her friends than his. It wasn’t necessarily that he was faking it, acting like anyone other than himself. It was just that he seemed lighter around them: Eva, Gio, Marti, Silvia, and the rest; as if he didn’t have to play the role of hardened Rich King Incanti anymore. He could just be soft, loving Edo who watered her plants in the morning and bought her succulents instead of flowers and hot cocoa instead of champagne. In moments like this, she was selfishly glad he was here, with her, in Rome. That he’d picked her, even if he said he didn’t. 

He pulled away from her, reluctantly.

  “Should we get another round?” Edo said, eyeing Nico. Nico gave him a nod and the two headed to the café window, clearing away the empty mugs that littered the table. Ele caught Marti watching them go, his eyes fixed on Nico. Nico must have felt his gaze because he turned back for a moment and gave Marti a smirk and a little head bobble before turning back to his conversation with Edo.

“How’s he doing?” Ele asked softly. She knew that Nico had had a rough week, and up until this morning, she wasn’t sure if he’d actually feel like coming out with them. 

Marti just shrugged and watched Nico for another moment, as if he was afraid the black-haired boy would disappear if he looked away.  

“We’re taking it minute by minute. I know he’s happy to be here. He likes Edoardo.”

“Should I be nervous?” Ele joked. Martino smiled, turning his full attention to Ele now.

“You?? I think I should be the one worried. Edo is much more handsome than I am.”

Ele reached across the table and held Marti’s chin in her hands.

“No more of that, Martino Rametta. You know very well you’re a gorgeous human. I mean, just think about all of the girls who wanted to be with you last year.”

Marti laughed, no doubt remembering Fede’s infatuation with him. Ele dropped his chin, sinking into her seat again. 

“Are we gardening tomorrow?” Marti asked. Ele nodded. That too had become part of their new normal. 

On Sunday mornings, Ele and Marti made their way to a community garden near Ele’s house and tended to the plants. It had started out as another double date idea for them, but neither Edo or Nico had been very receptive to the whole thing. They didn’t want dirt in their clothes and under their nails, so they’d really just hung around while Ele and Marti did the dirty work. 

Then Ele had found Marti there one Sunday when Nico wasn’t feeling well and needed space. And after that, it became their thing. 

“If you want to bring Nico…”

“Oh no. Gardening is our time Eleonora.” Marti said. She smiled.

“It is.” 

Most of the time, they didn’t talk much while they were gardening, just focused on pulling weeds or planting new herbs and vegetables. But it was nice, to have someone to not talk to sometimes. She had started to look forward to their Sundays together.

“Status report?” Edo said, setting a new cocoa in front of Ele. She smiled up at him and he squeezed her shoulder gently. She looked over at Sana, who was talking quickly, hands flying. Whatever she was saying, Yousef was looking at her like it was the most interesting thing he’d ever heard. She noticed how his shoulders had dropped, relaxed. Apparently, Sana wasn’t the only one nervous about their non-date date. 

“Sana’s telling a story.”

“Or she’s talking about science.” Marti added.

“Whatever it is, it seems to be working.” Nico said, taking one last peak at the couple before sitting down next to Marti and handing him a small espresso mug. The two clinked their mugs together and drank their espresso, Marti finishing his whole mug in the time it took Nico to take a sip, preferring to enjoy the taste while Martino liked the buzz of the caffeine in his veins. 

“Eva and Gio are nearly sitting in each other’s laps now.” Edo offered. Ele couldn’t help but turn to look now, and sure enough the former lovers had subconsciously gotten so close together, Gio had to widen the space between his knees to fit Eva’s legs between them while they sat, talking in hushed tones. 

Ele had always found the steadfast nature of Gio’s eye contact endearing, even when Eva would do everything she could to avoid meeting his gaze. She could tell he enjoyed the game of it, of waiting to catch Eva’s chocolate brown eyes looking back at him. Ele saw the small smile creep onto his lips now as Eva returned his gaze for a moment. 

Ele turned back to her table, picking up her mug and sipping on the hot drink. As the night wore on, it had gotten a little chilly and she was glad to have the drink to warm her hands. In the absence of Edo’s, she hadn’t realized how cold her fingers had gotten until she picked up the mug. 

“Edoardo?” She mused, suddenly remembering something Nico had told her earlier. 

“Hmm.” He said, leaning in to kiss her cheek as she set her drink down. She leaned into the kiss, letting him wrap his arms around her waist. 

“Why did I hear that you skipped Art History class? You told me it was cancelled.” She asked, pulling away from him just enough that she could meet his gaze. The shock on his face shifted to annoyance as he looked from her to Nico. 

“I didn’t know you’d cut class. You have to tell me these things!” Nico said.

“Didn’t you notice I wasn’t there?” Edo asked.

“I also skipped.” Nico said with a laugh. “I was asking for your notes.”

Edo laughed now too.

“We’ll coordinate better next time.” He offered, a small smile to Nico in forgiveness. 

“Now they’re going to figure out a whole system to avoid actually going to class.” Marti said, head in his hands with a laugh.  

“We’ll wonder why they’re suddenly taking all of the same classes next semester.” Ele added laughing. 

She looked back at Edo now, admiring how the lights in the café caught the flecks of gold in his dark brown eyes. He smiled at her and leaned in for a kiss, deep and bitter from his coffee. 

This time there were no groans from the other side of the table. If Ele was paying attention to anything but the butterflies dancing around in her stomach or the fire on her skin where Edo’s fingers grazed, she’d know it was quiet because Martino and Nico were at this very moment deep in their own world, exchanging quick kisses to the nose between deep, content kisses. 

She also might have noticed Sana and Eva exchanging a knowing look across the patio, smirking at one another. At Sana’s table, her phone buzzed. She held it out, letting Yousef read the text from Eva over her shoulder.

“They’re so cute. I can’t believe they don’t know we’re here.” Eva wrote.

Sana chuckled, replying, 

“Yeah, because we weren’t as obvious as they are, all sitting together, right in the middle of the café like that.”

With that, Sana put the phone down and turned back to Yousef.

“So evolution theory, huh? I’ve learned quite a bit about it recently actually…”

Across the patio, Eva watched them for another moment, smiling as she watched Yousef take in whatever Sana was saying, clearly falling for her opiniated, beautiful friend the way the rest of them had. She could feel Gio’s eyes on her, the familiarity of his warmth nice on this cool fall night. She turned to look at him and noticed the small smile cross his lips as she looked over. 

“Did you make this happen?” She asked. She wasn’t sure if she was referencing the spying they were doing or that they were doing it alone. Gio just shrugged. He probably didn’t know what she’s referencing either. But she was glad either way. It was nice to see all of her friends like this. Just happy with the people they loved. 

She looked at Gio as the thought crossed her mind. Because she loved him and because maybe now, with so much history between them, they could try again. He seemed to feel it too, his eyes darting between her eyes and her lips. Old Eva would have waited for him to make a move, would have waited for some kind of sign that this was happening. But she wasn’t old Eva anymore. 

Instead, Eva closed the distance between them, kissing him softly, lazily even. Like she knew she’d have time for many more kisses after this one. Because she and Gio had wasted so much time, they had a lot of time not kissing to make up for. 

At the café window, Luca and Silvia giggled, taking it all in. 

“They’re really hopeless, aren’t they?” Luca asked. Silvia looked at him, smiling. 

“We’re a little hopeless too, aren’t we?” She said before leaning in to kiss the cute, awkward blonde boy, right where he’d first asked her out all those months ago.  



	2. Garden Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after the double date, Ele and Marti’s Sunday ritual is interrupted when they find an unlikely gardener among the tomatoes - Yousef.

It was still early when Martino arrived at the garden, the morning sun just beginning to warm the air around him. It was chillier today than it had been, the weather finally catching up with the calendar and the sudden change in weather struck him as he noticed the steep decline in attendance this morning.

The garden, which had been overflowing with bodies all summer, now only held half a dozen or so. He hadn’t really considered what he’d do once gardening season was over and he would no longer have these lazy Sunday mornings with Eleonora. The thought hit him harder than he’d expected, a sudden dread filling his stomach. It was an unexpected and odd sensation, but he wasn’t ready to lose their tradition.

He didn’t consider Ele one of his closest friends. That title was reserved for Giovanni and Eva. But over the last few months, he’d developed a different kind of relationship to Ele than the other people in their friend group.

They’d barely known each other before she went to England, only exchanging pleasantries at parties over the summer, on the rare occasion that Gio and Eva agreed to attend the same gathering or one or the other was busy for the night and the groups were free to intermingle again.

Martino let the usual sensation of guilt wash over him as he thought about it now, the sour aftertaste for his part in Eva and Gio’s breakup, long forgiven but not entirely forgotten, at least not by Marti.

But Ele didn’t seem to judge him for that. Nor did she treat him any differently when she’d gotten back from her trip abroad, despite the fact that, when she left, he’d been with Emma and when she returned, he was very much with Niccolo.

Maybe it was because of her close relationship to Filippo or her own flawed behavior in the name of love, but Martino believed it was more than that. It was just because that’s the kind of person Eleonora was. She saw through his usual bullshit. Saw right down into his soft heart.

Marti smiled at the thought, looking around, but he didn’t see his brunette friend and so he settled down in the dirt near the patch of the garden they liked best.

He checked his phone, but didn’t have any messages from Ele, so he assumed she’d be there shortly. He also hadn’t heard from Nico, but it was early and after a rough week, he knew Nico needed all of the sleep he could get. He’d left him a few breakfast biscuits by the bed this morning, admiring how peaceful Nico looked as he snuck out of the room, careful to shut the door slowly as he went.

He smiled at his phone screen for a moment, a candid shot that Gio had captured of he and Nico at the lake this summer, when the boys had retreated from the stuffy heat of the city to Gio’s family’s cabin.

In the photo, Nico and Marti were frozen in mid-air, swim trunks billowed out around their tan thighs, Nico’s muscular back perfectly highlighted by the mid-day sun, their arms outstretched overhead, hands interlocked between them. Marti could almost feel the cold lake water hitting him seconds after this photo had been captured. The screen went black and Marti was pulled out of the memory. He slid the phone away again and got to work.

He hadn’t been weeding long when he heard a familiar voice calling to him.

“Buongiorno Martino.”

Marti turned to see Ele smiling at him. He got up, dusting off his hands, and greeted her.

“How was the rest of your night?” he asked.

He and Nico had left Ele and Edo at the café, their departure coming only a few minutes after they’d watched Eva and Gio slip out, hands intertwined.

“Uneventful. Edoardo wanted to walk around the city after the café. He was too caffeinated to sleep.”

Marti laughed. 

“Nico had the opposite problem. I could barely get him the few blocks home. Thank god we’d walked. He may have fallen asleep on the bike.”

Ele laughed now too. They grew quiet now, smiles on their faces, hands digging into the dirt. They stayed like this for a while, commenting sporadically on the conditions of the vegetables around them.

#

Martino pulled at a thick weed, concentrating on extracting the roots that had managed to take hold despite the fact that he and Ele had been here only a week ago. He was so focused on the task at hand he almost didn’t notice Ele at first, tapping on his shoulder.

“Martino.” She said, voice low. He looked up at her, the urgency in her voice startling. He released his grasp on the weed and turned to Ele now. She gave a small head nod in the direction of the entrance, eyes wide, with excitement or shock he couldn’t quite tell.

He followed her gaze and his eyes quickly mirrored the expression he’d seen on hers. Standing out from the older woman and young mothers was a new figure, his shaggy brown hair hung low over his eyes, backwards baseball cap pushing out the hair around his ears. Even from here, Marti could hear the slightest beats coming from the headphones he wore, the cord swinging from his phone as Yousef walked over to the tomatoes.

Marti and Ele exchanged a look.

“What do we do?” Marti asked.

“We have to say something right?”

“I don’t know. He hasn’t seen us.”

“But he will.”

Marti hesitated, giving Ele the opportunity to make the decision for them. Before he could stop her, she turned her attention to the tomato beds and waved.

“Yousef.” She said, loudly enough that he would hear her, but without drawing attention from the rest of the gardeners, who were peacefully working, voices low as they debated fertilizers and pesticides and which herbs were doing the best this year.

“He’s wearing headphones. He can’t hear you.” Marti said, as if that would discourage Ele from getting what she wanted now that she’d put her mind to it. His stomach fluttered a bit as she stood up and marched over to where Yousef was now pulling weeds. Marti put out his hand to stop her, but it was no use.

He watched her gently tap Yousef’s shoulder, and the recognition pass over Yousef’s face as he recognized Ele from the few times they’d met.

Sana had tried to keep her brother and his friends separate from her own social life, but after she’d met Yousef, things had changed. Suddenly, she didn’t mind when her brother and his entourage, including Yousef, showed up at house parties or at the bars and clubs they frequented.

Marti could see it on her face long before she’d confessed to him that she had developed a crush on Yousef. He’d acted surprised though, as if he hadn’t seen her watching Yousef across the bar or laughing at his jokes a little too long because he knew that Sana was private. That she would be embarrassed to know that they’d all speculated as much for weeks now. He didn’t want to scare her off.

It was fun to see Sana, who for so long had been the steadfast, logical one in the group become a giddy school girl whenever Yousef’s name was mentioned in conversation. He liked seeing his fierce friend’s soft underbelly for a change.

Yousef gave Marti a small wave as they approached the plot that Ele and Marti were working in and Marti stood to give him a proper greeting.

“Do you come here a lot?” Ele asked.

“Every so often. My sister likes to pick fresh herbs and tomatoes for her bruschetta and I’ll tag along.”

Ele nodded at this as she settled into the dirt again, absentmindedly pulling at a weed under her foot.

“Are you close with your sister?” Ele asked, her voice laced with innocent wonder even though Marti could see the wheels in her head turning. Yousef nodded in response to the question.

“I am now. We used to fight a lot as kids but now that we’re older, I think we’ve moved past hair pulling and name calling.”

That got a laugh from Ele.

 “I have a brother, so I completely understand.”  

Marti laughed too, imagining young Filipo and Eleonora arguing and play fighting in the yard.

“Do you have any siblings?” Yousef asked, eying Marti.

Marti nodded.

“A step brother. He’s young though so it’s different.”

Yousef nodded, taking a seat near Ele. Marti returned his attention to the weed he’d been working on, carefully working around the roots to make sure he got it all up. They worked like this for a few minutes, carefully navigating the interlocking root systems under the dirt, trying to avoid pulling up anything of value.

“How long have you known Elias?” Marti asked, genuinely curious. He knew little about Sana’s brother or the friends that had suddenly become so intertwined with his own.

“We were friends when we were kids, but I moved away for a while. It’s nice to be back.”

“Where did you live?” Ele asked.

“London. Sana told me you lived in Manchester?”

Ele nodded. “I was able to visit London a few times though. It’s a magnificent place.”

Yousef nodded.

“It really is.”

“Were you sad to leave?” Marti asked. Yousef hesitated.

“Not really. I mean. It was an amazing place to grow up, but it’s been nice to be back…”

Marti watched Ele’s eyebrows raise. He could see the question she didn’t want to ask. Yousef continued,  

“And everyone’s been so welcoming. Sana and Elias especially.”

Marti bit his tongue, afraid of the jokes he knew he was capable of making. Ele shot him a look, as if she could read his mind.

“They’re wonderful.” Marti said, quickly.

“Sana’s a little tough when you first meet her but she’s the most loyal person I know.” Ele added.

“I’m figuring that out.” Yousef said, his smile wide.

“You two have spent a lot of time together recently...” Ele said. Marti could hear how loaded the question sounded as she said it. Yousef looked at her for a moment and then at the weeds, trying to hide the blush creeping to his cheeks with his hair. Marti choked down his laugh.

“Yeah, we’ve become…close.” Yousef said, but Marti could hear the hesitation in his voice. He almost felt bad for Yousef, who probably did not expect this interrogation when he arrived this morning. He thought he was walking into the garden when he was actually walking into the lion’s den.

Ele just nodded and went back to pulling weeds and Marti could tell she was about ready to let the matter go. But Marti wasn’t.

“If you hurt my friend, I’ll kill you.” Martino said, surprised at how serious the words now sounded out loud.

When he’d said them in his head, he’d meant for the statement to sound like a joke. But as the words had come out, they’d been laced with a chilly realness. He’d meant them, and the threat behind them. Sure, he and Sana had only become friends in the last year, but he’d grown to love her. All of those hours in the radio booth had taught him not only about powerful women in history, but also about the powerful woman sitting next to him, spewing his research into the airwaves, despite the fact she’d rather be studying or reading.

She’d done that to help Silvia, just as she’d forced him to come to the meetings to begin with, blackmailing him with the weed she’d snuck from the party order to protect Fede. In fact, everything Sana did was in an effort to protect her friends, including Martino. For a change, he wanted to protect her.

Yousef and Ele stared at Marti, the air still between them. But then Yousef smiled.

“Understood. I have no plans of hurting her…besides, she’d probably kill me before you ever got the chance.”

Ele and Martino laughed now, nodding in agreement.

With that, the three fell into a comfortable silence, passing their gardening tools around, pulling and pruning and picking until the plots of land around them were manicured, their fingers full of dirt, and their stomachs full of fresh herbs and vegetables.  

Marti looked up, noticing how high the sun had gotten by the time they were finished. He imagined it must be almost eleven by now, but his phone hadn’t made a sound, meaning his friends must all still be sleeping or otherwise pre-occupied.

“I should be going. Sana and I are supposed to get lunch. She wants some help doing research for her radio show.” Yousef said, standing to wipe the dirt from his knees and hands. Ele and Marti stood too, shaking off the dirt and stray leaves sticking to their clothes and arms.

“I’ve been replaced!” Marti said with a laugh. Ele rolled her eyes.

“You decided to do a show with Elia instead!” Ele said.

“I said I could do both!” Marti offered.

“Face it, she doesn’t need you anymore.” Ele said.

“Sana doesn’t need anyone. I think she just likes the company.” Marti said, turning back to Yousef, who blushed a little and looked at the ground.

“The feeling is mutual, I assure you.” He said, quietly, before looking up at them again.

“Have a nice time.” Ele said, giving him a hug goodbye. Marti followed suit and Yousef gave them a small nod before he started out. He’d barely made it to the front gate when Ele called out to him.

“We’ll be here every Sunday until the weather turns…if you want to join us.” Ele offered. Yousef smiled and gave another nod.

“I’ll see you Sunday.” He said.

With that, he walked out the front gate, putting his headphones back in as he walked down the street and around the corner. When Marti finally looked back, Ele was staring at him.

“What?” He asked, guilty smile already pulling at the corners of his mouth. She just gave him a look.

In the short time Marti had known Ele, he’d realized that she was the master of a look. In those gorgeous green eyes, Eleonora Sava had learned to communicate every feeling and every thought she’d ever had. He’d never really understood how expressive a person’s eyes could be until he met Ele. He’d watched her have entire conversations with Edoardo with glances alone. And he knew the looked she’d just given him meant that she was amused and baffled by him, and the statement he’d made to Yousef. Martino shrugged.

“I meant it.”

“I know you did.”

She smiled at him, before slipping her coat on. They walked to the front of the garden together and separated, walking in opposite directions across the city.

#

Marti slipped into his bedroom, a towel around his neck as he rubbed the water from his hair, the fresh smell of his shampoo floating through the musk of sleep that hit him when he walked in. Nico hadn’t moved since he’d left him this morning, and Marti quietly treaded across the room towards his closet, looking for a clean t-shirt to pair with the sweatpants he’d put on.

“Buongiorno.” Nico mumbled from the bed, voice rumbling low, still heavy with sleep.

Marti turned to him and smiled, crossing to the bed to look down on Nico, hair wild and eyes barely open.

“Buongiorno.” He said softly, leaning down to give him a kiss on the nose. As he pulled away, Nico reached out, making grabby hands in Marti’s direction. Marti took his cue and laid down next to him, abandoning his towel on the floor. Nico curled onto his chest and Marti relaxed, running his hand through Nico’s hair.

“How was gardening?” Nico said, his breath warm on Marti’s chest.

“Good. We ran into Yousef.”

Nico turned his head a little so he could peer up at Marti, Cheshire cat grin on his face.

“And?” Nico said, giving Marti his famous head bobble for effect. Marti laughed.

“And nothing. He gardened with us.”

Nico rolled his eyes.

“And?” He said again, impatient.

“And I threatened him. Just a little.” Marti said. Nico sat up, laughing.

“What? What did you say?”

“Just that if he hurt Sana, I’d kill him.” Marti said. The thought of it made Nico laugh even harder.

“Hey, don’t laugh. I could do it.”

Nico’s laugh died down as he controlled himself.

“I’m sorry. It’s just…you’re so…” Nico smiled, and Marti could see the effort he was putting into not laughing. Martino made a show of sighing and turning on his side, away from his boyfriend.

“Stronzo.” Marti said, sulking.

He felt Nico shuffling around on the bed behind him, his weight moving the springs of the mattress and finally settling as Nico laid down behind Marti, his bare chest pressed against Marti’s back as he wrapped his free arm around Marti’s chest and pulled him even closer so that Marti could feel Nico’s heart beating against his shoulder blades.

“Scusami.” Nico whispered before stretching his neck to kiss Marti’s cheek. Marti couldn’t help but smile now and turned over to kiss him properly, the garden party of the morning now entirely forgotten.


	3. Happy Birthday Fede!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone comes together to celebrate Fede's birthday, and can't help but think about how much they've all changed in the last year.

Sana stood in the doorway of the rooftop, watching Silvia take photos of the wine and dessert trays she’d spent the last fifteen minutes arranging, catching the fading sunlight in the glass bottles and on the metal tray covered in beautiful pastries.

Sana smiled, attention now on Fede, who had finished setting up the stereo system and was now ready to begin the festivities. She watched Fede walk by the table, mid-photo shoot, to swipe a pastry from the tray, surely ruining the aesthetic of the shot Silvia had worked so hard to perfect. In the quiet of the early evening, she could hear them squabbling across the roof. 

“Hey!”

“It’s my birthday. I’ll do what I please.”

Silvia gave her a pout before rearranging the tray to fill the hole from the stolen pastry. Fede gave her a giggle before catching Sana’s eye. 

“Can you believe her?”

“I would expect nothing less! This is Silvia we’re talking about.” Sana teased. 

“It’s the best lighting right now!” Silvia offered. 

“So we should be taking pictures of us, not the food!” Fede argued. 

“I’m finished anyway.” Silvia said, pocketing her phone and taking a pastry from the tray. 

She lifted it to her face and Sana could see her shoulders rise and fall as she smelled the buttery treat before she took a bite, eyes closed and a satisfied smile on her face. 

“What are you all doing standing around? It’s time for photos.” Eva called, coming through the doorway from behind Sana, her hair a streak of auburn flames in the warm, golden light. 

“That’s what I’ve been saying!” Fede agreed, grabbing Sana and Eva by the hand and pulling them to the white wall nearby. 

“Silvia! Ele!” Fede shouted.

Soon, Silvia and Ele were with them, a phone set up against the wine bottles they’d just arranged, a timer counting down and catching them in various stages of preparedness. By the time they were finished, Sana was certain that she was laughing in half of the photos they’d taken, unable to concentrate as Silvia and Fede bickered like an old married couple about the poses and moods they were trying to convey with each snapshot. As they all finally pulled apart from each other, she could see only flushed cheeks and shining eyes as her friends smiled at one another. 

She was happy, right now, laughing and teasing the other girls. Just Le Matte together. They’d come so far since they’d celebrated Fede’s birthday last year. So much had changed for all of them, it was nice to see that somethings hadn’t. 

She caught Ele’s gaze, watching her. Ele, who held so much in those eyes, who seem to sense Sana’s own nostalgia. She reached for Sana and pulled her into a hug and Sana was quickly swarmed by the rest of them, finding it hard to breath in the middle of the hug, either because of the tight hold or because of her own laughter, she couldn’t tell. 

They finally disentangled themselves, quiet now, as the last streaks of golden light faded from the sky and the string lights overhead clicked on. Sana took in the view, one arm still draped around Ele’s waist, the other around Eva. She rested her head on Ele’s shoulder now, relaxing as Ele rested her head on Sana’s as the whole group drank in the last moments of the Roman evening sunlight. But as quickly as they had quieted, the moment was over. Silvia slipped out of Fede’s arm and grabbed a bottle of champagne, holding it above her head.

 “Happy birthday Fede!” 

Sana laughed as Silvia popped the cork off of the champagne bottle and the foaming drink fizzed from the top, splashing onto the concrete rooftop. 

#

Silvia twirled under the string lights, laughing as Fede spun her a little faster, trying to avoid the other people on the dance floor, the music just loud enough to be heard over the many conversations happening across the rooftop. 

“No one danced last year.” Silvia laughed. 

“People danced; you were just too busy watching Edo to notice.” Fede teased. 

Silvia shrugged, laughing.

“I mean, can you blame me?” Gods are…”

“Immortal.” Fede finished, the line having transformed from a declaration to a joke at some point in the last nine months. 

Silvia considered it for a moment. Now that she knew the real Edo, it was hard to picture them together. He was so…not right for her. She was almost embarrassed it had taken her so long to figure that out. She giggled again as Fede spun her.

“What’s this?”

Silvia stopped twirling now, spotting Luca behind Fede, two drinks in his hands. She smiled at him.

“I leave to get drinks, and you replace me?” He continued, trying not to smile back at her.  

“I’m sorry. But it’s Fede’s birthday. I couldn’t say no.” She said. Fede laughed before giving Silvia a kiss on the cheek.

“Besides, she was my best friend before she was your girlfriend. You’re lucky I’m willing to share her.” Fede added, giving Luca a playful look. 

Luca laughed. 

“Well I’m certainly lucky for that.”

Luca smiled at Silvia now, and Fede gave them a quick nod before disappearing in the direction of the drinks. 

Luca offered Silvia one of the glasses in his hand and Silvia took it, giving him a small kiss on the cheek for his trouble. She loved how his cheeks still got pink when she kissed him, as if he was always surprised by it. As if she hadn’t been kissing him for almost five months now. She smiled wide.

“What?” He asked. 

“Nothing. I’m just happy, that’s all.”

Luca smiled at that and took her hand. She gave it to him and laughed as he tried to twirl her the way Fede had, but struggling. Silvia spun anyway and then spun Luca for good measure. 

“Hey! I’m supposed to do the spinning! I’m the boy.”

“I know. But it’s fun being spun, isn’t it? And besides I’m getting dizzy.” She said with a laugh.  She spun him again.

“It is fun…” Luca mumbled. 

“Told you.” 

But their spinning was cut off as the song changed from an upbeat pop song to a slow dance. Luca held his hand out to Silvia. 

“Dance with me?” He asked, so earnestly that Silvia felt herself go weak in the knees. Luca continued to surprise her with his sincerity, always hidden beneath his off-handed and often unfiltered comments. She took his hand and let him pull her close, wrapping her arms around his neck and looking at him for a moment before giving him a quick kiss. 

“What was that for?” He asked. 

“Because I felt like it.” Silvia said, matter of fact. 

Luca just smiled at that and pulled her in for another kiss. She smiled into it and then placed her cheek against his as they swayed. She watched the world around them, having forgotten for a moment that they were in public. She caught sight of Fede at the stereo, who gave her a thumbs up. She gave her friend a small smile and understood now that Fede had changed the music just to give her and Luca this moment. 

They swayed more and she let their dancing pull her vision from Fede to Sana and Yousef, laughing by the roof’s edge, their hands nearly touching. Silvia made a mental note to ask about that later. She also saw Eva and Gio in the corner of the roof, away from the rest of the crowd, watching as Gio wrapped Eva’s arms around his shoulders, getting her to dance with him. Silvia watched as Eva stood on her tiptoes in order to reach him properly. Silvia pulled her focus from them and back to Luca. 

“You look beautiful tonight.” He said when their eyes met. She smiled and kissed him, the world melting away around them again. 

#

Eva strained to reach her arms around Gio’s shoulders, awkwardly swaying on her tiptoes. She was not graceful even before the champagne. Gio seemed to notice her troubles and gently lifted her before setting her down again, her feet now on top of his.

She wanted to step down, to ask if she was squishing his feet like this, but she didn’t. When she opened her mouth to ask, the words had caught in the back of her throat, because just then Gio looked down at her and smiled. 

There wasn’t anything particularly different about the smile. It was the same one he’d always given her. But after so many months apart, she still wasn’t used to seeing it on his face. It was a smile that had been reserved for her. Even Sofia hadn’t gotten that smile. Eva knew because she’d spent too long staring at Gio when he’d been with the Argentinian. 

“Almost like little koala.” She finally said, not quite trusting her voice.

There was the smile again. 

“Almost.” He offered. 

“Did you imagine this is where you’d be a year ago? When you were hiding in the bathroom smoking with the boys?” Eva teased. Gio laughed, sighing. 

“No. But I hoped…”

Eva could feel the heat rise in her cheeks as Gio planted a kiss on her forehead. 

“Me too…”

“Except you were hoping it would be Marti dancing with you instead of me…”

Now Eva was blushing for a different reason. 

“To be fair, I’d had a lot of wine when I tried to kiss him…”

“And he said he had a crush on you.” Gio said, still laughing.

“Leave me alone. I was really missing you.” Eva laughed, giving him a playful pout. 

They were quiet for a moment, swaying as Gio leaned in close, so that Eva was nuzzled into his neck and his mouth was close to her ear. She could feel the hair on her shoulder dance as Gio spoke.

“I missed you too.” 

She squeezed her arms around his shoulders, not trusting herself to speak without her voice cracking.

Instead Eva let Gio lead them around the dark corner of the roof, his feet lifting hers as they swayed a little and she watched paper lanterns rise into the air from the comfort of Gio’s chest. She even caught sight of Ele and Edo making their way to the ledge, an unlit lantern between them. 

She pulled away from Gio just enough to smile up at him, meeting his eyes for a while. She usually couldn’t hold his gaze, but tonight, under the string lights and the Roman moonlight, she didn’t mind so much. In fact, she liked the way her gaze lifted his smile, if it was possible, the ends of his grin nearly reaching his eyes. 

“I love you.” He whispered, still holding her gaze. She almost swayed right off his feet and she could see his smile drop, just a little, anticipating her hesitation. 

They’d said “I love you” dozens of times before, if not hundreds. And Eva had meant each and every one of them. But that was before they’d broken up. They hadn’t it said it yet, their second attempt at this still so new. But she could tell from Gio’s eyes, from his smile, that he meant it. 

“I love you too.” She said. And he could probably tell from her smile that she meant it too.   

#

Ele watched as Edo fished a lighter from his pocket, the paper lantern ready to go in her hands. He’d given up smoking but couldn’t quite bring himself to abandon all of his lighters, a toy to play with when his fingers were restless. Ele would still find them occasionally, tucked into his jeans pockets when she’d agree to wash his clothes. 

Now he flicked the lighter and set the small torch against the paper lantern’s base, smiling as it began to lift from their hands. Together, they lifted the lantern into the sky and released, letting it bob away from them, watching it dip a little. Ele thought for a moment it might just plummet down and hit the ground, losing steam before it had even taken flight. But sure enough, after a moment, it caught the breeze and began to ascend, following the small trail of lanterns that the group had already released. 

Edo wrapped his arm around her shoulder, eyes on the lantern. 

“This is our second time doing this, you know.” He said with a teasing smile. She rolled her eyes.

“I remember.” 

And of course she did. It had been right before she left of Manchester. She even remembered him offering to drive her to the airport the next day. She’d of course hoped that he would forget about her while she was gone. Or that’s at least what she’d told herself when she got on the plane that day and every day that Silvia mentioned him after. But he hadn’t. 

She smiled at him now, his features soft in the warm glow of the string lights above their heads as he looked up at the lanterns floating high above the city, childlike wonder in his eyes and his hair catching the light just right. Only a year ago, she and Filippo had been commenting on his bedhead, the mess of tangled dark curls that she’d now grown to love. 

Edo looked over at her and Ele was quick to look up at the lantern, only pretending like she hadn’t been caught.

“Eleonora.” Edo said, voice low.  She didn’t look at him, focusing on the one lamp that floated close to the roof, but let a smile creep on her face. In her peripheral vision, she could see Edo smiling back at her as he leaned in so close she could smell the familiar, comforting smell of his leather jacket. 

“God you’re beautiful.” He said simply. 

She felt the blood rush to her cheeks as she finally looked over at him. He was smiling wide, proud to have caught her attention. She leaned in close, pulling his face to hers so she could kiss him properly. 

When they finally pulled away from each other, Edo rested his forehead on Ele’s, so close she could make out the flecks of gold in his eyes. 

“Do you know that you’re supposed to make a wish on those lanterns?” He asked. 

“Of course.” Ele said. 

“And what did you wish for?” He asked. 

“I can’t tell you or it won’t come true.”

“Fine.” He said, pulling away from her now, a teasing smirk playing across his lips. Ele rolled her eyes and giggled.

“Don’t be so moody Eduardo.” Ele teased, the joke still funny to her after all this time. Edo sighed and rolled his eyes. He hesitated and she wondered for a moment if he would let it go. She felt a ping of disappointment at the thought. But then he looked down at her, eyes sparkling.

“Don’t call me Eduardo.” He said, smiling in spite of himself. She gave him a raised eyebrow.

“Is that not your name? Oh, I’m so sorry. I must have confused you with my boyfriend.”

Ele made a show of trying to walk away but Edo caught her by the hand and pulled her back to him. 

“No. No. I’m Eduardo, future husband of Eleonora Francesca Sava.”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself.” Ele said, ignoring the flutter in her stomach from his words. 

“I’m not. Notice I said only said _ future  _ husband. What exactly do you think I’ve been wishing for with those lanterns?” Edo said, a teasing smirk on his face. Ele rolled her eyes again, but deep down knew that he wasn’t entirely joking when he said it. She pulled him in for a kiss again, letting this one grow deep. She loved him, and for the first time, she wasn’t afraid of that feeling. 

They pulled apart and looked at the sky again for a moment, now only dotted by a few remaining lanterns still close enough to see. 

“Shall we grab drinks?” Edo asked. Ele nodded. 

They headed towards the center of the celebration, catching sight of Fede and Marti talking at the makeshift bar Ele had helped set up earlier in the day.

A cool breeze swept over Ele and Edo as they approached. The wind had been blocked from them before, and suddenly Ele realized how chilly it had gotten. Before she could say anything, Edo had already taken off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders. She smiled at him and kissed him again, smiling as Marti and Fede cheered them on from a few feet away. 

#

As Fede disappeared for another shot, Marti grabbed two beers from the bar and made his way through the crowd, maneuvering his way through kissing couples, groups of rowdy friends, and impromptu dance battles. 

He finally made his way to the outer edge of the rooftop, catching his breath. He recognized the spot instantly, the flower pot where he’d hidden Elia’s weed still exactly as he remembered it. He looked over the edge of the roof as far as he could, almost expecting to see police cars below, relieved to find the street empty except for a few parked cars and someone on a bicycle, gliding silently through the night. 

He sank back onto the ledge, eyes now back on the party, watching his friends and classmates sing and dance as a popular song came on. He couldn’t remember if Fede’s party had been like this last year, although he’d spent most of it in the bathroom, smoking, so he wasn’t exactly a reputable source of information from that night. 

Through the crowd, he saw Emma dancing with some of her friends and smiled. It was crazy to think that it had only been a year ago, at this party, where they’d met. But even crazier to think about the person he hadn’t met yet just a year ago.

“Boo!” Someone said, sneaking up beside Marti. 

He jumped a little, pulled out of his thoughts. He turned to find Nico stand next to him, grinning. 

“Stronzo.” Marti said with a laugh. 

Nico ignored him, leaning in for a kiss. Marti closed his eyes, accepting the apology. Finally detangling himself from the kiss after a few moments, he gave Nico his beer before wrapping his arm around his waist, pulling Nico close so they could talk over the noise. 

“How is Maddalena?” He asked, genuinely curious. Nico rolled his eyes.

“Fine. She wants to get dinner soon.”

“Am I invited?” Marti asked, trying to hide his jealousy under the mask of teasing. Nico gave him a smile and one of his famous head bobbles. 

“Of course. She wants it to be a double date.”

“With the new doctor?” Marti asked.

Nico nodded and gave Marti a small kiss.

“Were you jealous?” He asked. Marti shook his head, but could feel the smile creep on his face. 

“Well, you shouldn’t be anyway.” Nico said, serious now. Marti looked at him and smiled before giving his boyfriend another kiss. 

“I know.” He said, pulling Nico into a hug. 

They watched the crowd for a moment and Marti relaxed into Nico a little. Nico looked at him, sensing his mood change. He stroked Marti’s cheek with his thumb.

“What are you thinking about?” He asked. 

“Nothing.”

“You’re a bad liar.” Nico said. “I hate when your face is sad like that.” 

Marti smiled a little. 

“I’m not sad...just...thankful?” Marti said, trying to explain it. 

Nico just watched him, waiting. 

“I’m glad, I guess? Before you came over, I was thinking about how much my life has changed since I was at this party last year. I mean, a year ago, we hadn’t met yet...and I don’t know...I felt lost and sad all the time. And then I came to this party and hid some weed right here…” 

Marti pointed to the spot again.

“And then I had to go to the radio meeting and you walked in and well…” 

Nico was smiling wide at him now. Marti blushed a little, feeling vulnerable all of a sudden. 

“I guess we can both be glad you love pot so much.”

“Hey!” Marti said. “I’m trying to be romantic!”

Nico smiled at him again.

“It’s working.”

Marti smiled as Nico leaned in for a kiss.

#

Marti felt the bathroom counter dig into his lower back as he leaned back, Nico’s lips following his. The banging on the bathroom door continued. Nico finally relented and pulled away from Marti. 

They rolled their eyes at each other, annoyed by the interruption. Marti took Nico’s hand in his and reluctantly opened the bathroom door, coming face to face with Eva. 

She looked from Marti to Nico and then burst into laughter. Marti couldn’t help but laugh too, the deja vu so strong for both of them. Marti leaned forward and kissed Eva on both cheeks before finally pulling Nico out of the bathroom and into the hall, heading back upstairs and into the party.    
  



	4. Eva and Marti

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eva and Marti have a friend-date and talk about boys...or...Eva is captain of the Nicotino ship.

Eva flopped into her seat in the cafe, braid swaying violently as she sat. She put her head into her hands, eyes closed as she groaned.

“Buongiorno.” Marti laughed, already enjoying an espresso in the seat across from hers. Eva lifted her head so she could meet his eyes.

“Buongiorno.” She said, watching her red-headed best friend drink his third espresso of the day.

“What’s wrong?” Marti asked, voice light even though his eyebrows knit in concern.

“I’m exhausted!” She whined. She’d been up late helping Silvia decide on an outfit for a date with Luchino to an art gallery and hadn’t gotten much sleep.

“It’s Monday!” He teased.

“Tell that to my teachers. I already have so many assignments to do this week.”

“How many did you procrastinate on?”

“None! I swear.”

“Sure…” Marti said, giving her an incredulous look.

“Why are you giving me that look? I’m telling you the truth.”

“I haven’t heard from Gio in two days. I know you two weren’t studying all weekend.”

Eva blushed a little, still protesting.

“We did study. I swear Marti. I’m being good this year. I need to get my grades on track.”

Marti laughed, letting her off the hook but Eva could tell from the look on his face that he wasn’t fully convinced. Eva didn’t bother convincing Martino of the truth; she and Gio had spent most of the weekend together, but she’d been very insistent that they spend at least some of that time studying. Gio had even edited a few of her assignments for her.

She also didn’t tell Marti that they were taking things slow this time. That after so much, she wanted to make sure that they did things right, that she didn’t lose herself along the way. So as much time as they’d spent kissing this weekend, they’d also talked a lot. About school, and their friends, and the future, and themselves.

Eva had found scars on Gio’s shoulders she’d never noticed before. As she traced them with her fingers, she had heard the story of how he’d gotten them running after his brother when they were younger. She’d even introduced Gio to her parents, and he had dinner with them on Sunday night…only a few hours after he’d snuck out her window. She wanted things to be different than last time, but she also wanted Gio in her bedroom without having to have the door open.

Eva watched Marti give a head nod to someone behind them. She was about to turn around when she felt two big hands on her shoulders and a kiss on her cheek. Gio’s curls filled her vision as she turned to look at him, a smile instinctively crossing her face. He smiled down at her and gave her a small peck before standing up.

“Buongiorno Marti.” He said, smiling at his best friend. Eva watched as Marti stood and gave him a hug.

“Are you crashing our date?” Marti said with a laugh. Gio threw up his hands defensively.

“Absolutely not. The coffee machine in the hall isn’t working again and I owe Elia from foosball.”

Marti laughed and Gio turned his gaze to Eva.

“Besides, I’m under strict orders from Eva to not interrupt. I think she wants to be able to talk about me.”

Eva rolled her eyes.

“We were actually just talking about how she’s going to break up with you. Better watch out.” Marti said. Gio feigned shock, but Eva caught his shoulders tense.

“But I thought things were going so well.” Gio jokingly pleaded, getting on his knees so he was eye-level with Eva now. She covered her face with her hands, embarrassed by the scene the two were creating in the school café.

“Don’t you have coffee to get?” She said.

“So cold.” Gio said, laughing.

But before he could stand up, Eva leaned in, pulling his shirt towards her so their lips could meet. She kissed him, quick but loving. Trying to subdue any subconscious fears Marti’s comment may have had. After a weekend of being vulnerable with each other, Eva knew Gio’s weak points, the bruises their first breakup had left that hadn’t quite healed. In that kiss, Eva was trying to say _we’re okay, I promise – I’m not going anywhere._

She released her hold on his shift and Gio stood, starry eyed as he straightened his shirt.

“I’ll see you later.” She said to him, but really wanting to again say _we’re okay, I promise._ He nodded and she could see that his shoulders had fallen away from his ears now, relaxed, as he headed to the counter to order, giving her one more look over his shoulder.

Eva looked back from Gio to Marti, who was smiling at her.

“Yes?” She asked.

“Feels like old times.”

Eva laughed and shrugged. Marti laughed too before giving her a kind smile.

“It’s nice to see you two so happy.”

Eva looked back at Gio who was walking out the door now, giving her a wink as he disappeared, coffees in hand.

“Thanks Marti. We’re certainly no Martinico but…” Eva said with a laugh, earning a groan from Marti.

“Oh Fede…”

Eva laughed again. Marti pretended to hate the attention, but Eva could see the small blush rising on his cheeks along with a smile.

“How is Nico? I barely saw him at the party.”

“I know. He was sad he didn’t see more of you, but by the time he got there, you were dancing with Gio.”

“Well I didn’t see him until I ran into you two in the bathroom.” Eva said, another smirk on her lips. How odd it had been seeing Marti coming out of that bathroom two years in a row, this time with a charming boy behind him. Marti laughed.

“Sorry about that.”

“No you’re not.”

“You’re right.”

They’re quiet for a moment, letting their shared laugh fill the space.

“He’s doing well. He likes his classes, and he’s making a ton of friends.”

“Sounds like Nico.” Eva said, then waited. She knew from Marti’s face that there was more to share but she knew better than to push.  

“It’s just…” Marti started, and then looked into his hands. Eva couldn’t tell what emotion played across his face. He seemed almost…nervous.

“He finally moved into his grandparents’ place.”

“I know. I can’t wait to see it.” Eva said, thinking of the text from Nico inviting all of them over for a small housewarming party. Marti was quiet another moment.

“And I’m there most of the time…but I’m just worried, with him on his own…what if something happens and I’m not there?”

Eva could see it now. The unreadable expression on Marti’s face hadn’t been nerves, it was guilt. She reached across the table and took his hand in hers.

“Marti, nothing is going to happen.”

“How do you know?”

“Because we won’t let it.” She said, giving his hand a squeeze. “Besides, he has Edo on campus and his parents are still in Rome. You’re not in this alone Marti.”

Marti smiled at her.

“Okay.”

Eva smiled back at him.

“It’s a little weird.” Marti said. “I know we haven’t even been together a year, and he’s still in the city but…”

“You miss seeing him at school?” She asked knowingly. Marti nodded, almost embarrassed.  

She’d seen the shift in Marti since they’d come back to school. During their breaks, he was always looking at his phone, and she and Gio had both caught on to the small smile that would cross his face with every message from Nico.  

“I guess I’m just worried, that now that he’s not here, things will change.”

“They will. But you two will be okay.”

“How do you know?” Marti asked her, voice so small now that Eva almost had trouble hearing him over the chatter in the café.

“Because I’ve seen the way you look at each other, and the way you talk about each other. Because you love each other.”

“But is that enough?” Marti asked, meeting her eyes.

Eva didn’t tell Marti that she’d had this conversation already once before, with Nico only a few weeks before.

They had all gone on a trip to Bracciano, the girls renting a second cabin near Gio’s to fit all of them. One night, Eva had found Nico by the lake, in the spot where she liked to hide out, a cigarette glowing in Nico’s hand. She sat down next to him and he gave her a small nod.

“Did Marti send you looking for me?” He asked. She shook her head. In fact, Eva had snuck out on her own, needing a small break from the cacophony of noise in the cabin.

“Just needed fresh air. This is sort of my spot.”

Nico smiled.

“Well if you need it…” He said, moving to stand. Eva shook her head.

“I like the company.” Eva assured him. Nico gave her an appreciative nod and settled back into his seat. They watched the moon glisten off the lake’s glassy surface for a moment.

“Everything okay?” She asked quietly. Nico nodded.

“Just thinking about things.”

“Want to tell me about it?” Eva asked.

Somewhere over the past few months, Eva and Nico had become close, probably because she always ganged up on Marti with Nico but also because on nights like this, she’d found herself talking through her problems with Nico and he would do the same. They just understood each other.

“I guess, I’m just thinking about Marti. And our relationship, with school starting and all...”

A pit formed in Eva’s stomach. She loved Nico, but Marti was like her brother. If Nico was about to admit he wanted to break up, she wouldn’t be able to keep it from Marti.

She must have made a face because Nico quickly corrected her train of thought.

“I’m not going to break up with him.”

Eva relaxed.

“Then what’s wrong?”

Nico shrugged.

“School starts soon…and it’ll be the first time that we won’t be together all day. I mean, of course, we’ve gone a few days without seeing each other, but at school, at least we were in the same place and I could see him whenever I wanted.”

“Which was always during gym from what I remember.” Eva said, wanting to lighten Nico’s mood. He laughed a little and nodded before continuing,

“What if…Marti realizes how easy it is when I’m not around. That it’s nice not to constantly be worried that your boyfriend is going to run out of History in his underwear.”

Eva now understood Nico’s concern. She looked at him, and he pulled his eyes from the lake to meet hers.

“You don’t need to worry about Marti. He loves you.”

“I know that but…is that enough?”

Eva took a breath. As she knew too well, love was not always enough to keep people together. But most people aren’t Martino and Niccolo.

“Do you know what Marti told me once about the two of you back at Christmas time?”

Nico shook his head.

“That what you two have is so beautiful when it’s good that even when it gets bad you just get over it.”

In the moonlight, Eva could see a few tears streaking down Nico’s cheeks. She raised her hand and wiped them away with her thumb and then pulled him in for a hug.

“Thank you.” He whispered into her hair.

Eva thought about that conversation again, weighing whether to tell Marti about all of it. Instead she settled for,

“It’s enough. I know that Nico feels the same way. You two should talk to each other instead of worrying so much.”

Marti smiled at her, an inquisitive look on his face.

“Are you and Nico talking about me now?” He asked.

“Are you and Gio talking about me?” She said back with a smirk. Marti laughed, guilty.

Eva checked her phone.

“We should go to class. We can’t be late.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?” Marti teased, gathering his things.

“What did I tell you? New year, new Eva.” She smiled as they headed to class together.

As they reached a fork in the road, Eva turned in the direction of her class. She turned back to Marti.

“I’ll see you in a bit.”

She was about to walk off when she felt arms around her shoulders. She turned into Marti’s hug and hugged him back, thankful for a friendship that had weathered so much and still survived.


	5. Halloween Housewarming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico hosts a housewarming and thinks about how much has changed in a year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Skam Italia is back and I'm crying.

            Nico smiled, the plastic fangs between his teeth lightly pressing into his chin as the camera went off. Posed in the front of the group, Silvia detangled herself from between Sana and Fede to go check the shot.

            “It’s good.” She said, sounding a little impressed with herself. Dismissed, everyone broke from their well-choreographed group photo poses and spread out through Nico’s new home.

He’d wanted to have a small housewarming party sooner but with the stress of school starting and needing Filippo and Marti’s stamps of approval on furniture, it had taken him a little longer to settle in then he’d anticipated. Halloween became the perfect deadline, and excuse, to have things finished so that he could have everyone over for one of his favorite holidays.

As he looked around now, he was satisfied with the results of he and Marti’s efforts. It felt like more like a home then his parents’ house did, his artwork hung framed on the muted walls alongside doodles he couldn’t help but sketch and pictures of their friends and too many of he and Marti to count.

The couch was big and inviting, the soft brown leather crackling a little as you sank into it, adorned with giraffe throw pillows that Marti had found and given to him as a housewarming gift. He watched Gio and Eva sitting on it now, smiling at each other, dressed as a zookeeper and a koala respectively. They kissed happily, both clearly a little drunk on wine and each other. The sight made him happy. He wanted this house to be full of warmth and love like that. He wanted their friends to feel like they could be comfortable and vulnerable amongst the pillows and trinkets and candles that he’d collected at every flea market and antiques store he went to.  

Across the room sat the piano, the one thing from his parents’ house that Nico had asked to bring with him. They’d been reluctant to let him leave at all, but compromising, he’d agreed to leave his old bedroom intact in case he was ever in need. So far, the most time he’d spent in the old house were Sunday night dinners with his parents and the occasional afternoon visit to have his laundry done by the housekeeper.

Now Edo plunked away at the keys, softly serenading Ele while they sat side by side on the piano bench, Edo dressed as a cactus and Ele as a gardener. In one of their shared college classes that week, Edo had admitted to Nico that he loved the costumes but had been giving Ele grief about it all week, as always enjoying the witty banter as they argued. When they’d arrived tonight, Edo made a big show of pouting and crossing his arms in every photo Ele tried to get him to take, leaving her so fed up she had nearly given up on getting a nice shot of them before he caved and smiled wide.  

“Boo.” Someone whispered behind him, causing Nico to startle a bit. “Sorry Ni.” Marti laughed.

Of course, he should have recognized his boyfriend’s cologne sooner, feeling Marti’s arms wrap around him from behind. He relaxed into the hug, pressing his back up against Marti’s chest.  

Nico turned his head to see him now, noting that Marti had lost his fangs at some point in the night, but his pale make-up and the bits of blood that Nico had drawn coming from his mouth were still there. He was a more disheveled vampire than Nico, but a cute one nonetheless. Teasingly, Nico turned to bite his neck only to take out his fangs so he could kiss him instead.

He kissed up Marti’s neck and across his cheek before planting a deep kiss on his lips, a little swollen from the plastic fangs and from the many kisses they’d shared over the course of the party. Marti looked a little dazed as Nico pulled away.

“Are you having fun?” Marti asked. Nico nodded.

“I am. People seem to like the house.”

 “People love it Nico. You did a wonderful job.”

“ _We_ did a wonderful job.”

“I simply handled getting everything set up. You made it feel like a home.” Marti insisted, looking past Nico and seeing what Nico had.

All of their favorite people, together, totally relaxed and having fun together. They watched as Silvia, dressed as a princess, and Luca, her knight in shining armor, fed each other pieces of candy while Fede, in an inflatable T-Rex costume, danced with a football jersey-clad Elia and Filippo, wearing a white mesh tank top and angel halo. Nico laughed as Filippo twirled Fede around, ending their dance with a dip. Her costume made the moves ten times funnier and more bizarre than Nico imagined the sight would be out of costume.

Marti looked back at Nico now and kissed him again. Nico smiled into the kiss, not caring about the smeared make-up he’d have around his mouth.

“You know what today is, don’t you?” Marti asked when he pulled away, a twinkle in his eyes now.

“Halloween.” Nico teased. Marti pouted a bit.

“And???”

“It’s a Thursday?” Nico said, trying to feign confusion.

“Really?” Marti’s face fell a little, causing Nico’s stomach to turn over a little. He hated disappointing Marti, even for a moment.

“Have you gotten any better at holding your breath?” Nico finally asked. Marti’s eyes went wide before a smile stretched across his face. He gave Nico a playful shove.

“I thought you’d forgotten.”

“Our first kiss? Never.” Nico assured him, leaning in for a kiss now.

He thought about how much had changed since that kiss, how he hadn’t known how much Martino Rametta would mean to him in just a year. That night, 365 days before, he’d just been desperate for a moment alone with the red head. He’d taken Marti to that pool because it was the only place in the world where they could be truly alone (barring the unexpected arrival of the security guard). He didn’t know at the time how much he would grow to love Marti, but maybe he should have.

“Tomorrow, we’re going to the store, and then you’re spending three days in my bed.” Nico whispered. Marti smiled at him.

“Okay.”


	6. vanilla and amber (smells like home)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edoardo surprises Ele after a trip with the boys.

Ele pulled the scarf closer to her face, bracing herself as another cold gust as she walked toward the greenhouse. It smelled like vanilla and amber. It smelled like Edo. He’d given it to her for Christmas a month before and she’d sprayed it with his cologne before he’d left for his trip to Madrid with his friends. While Ele already had a pile of homework and exams on the horizon, Edo and his friends were still on their university breaks.

Judging by the slew of photos she’d received from Edo since he left, it seemed the boys hadn’t changed much in the few months they’d all been away. She was happy to see Edo so happy, his smile radiating warmth and joy, even through the phone screen.  

She pulled open the door to the greenhouse, a blast of warm air hitting her as she stepped inside and unwrapped the scarf from around her neck, carefully hanging it up on a hook along the wall along with her coat. Freed from her outer layer, Ele stretched her hands above her head and took in a deep breath. The smell of fresh soil and new growth mixed with…vanilla and amber, too strong now to be coming from her scarf. She only had a moment to question the scent when a sturdy set of arms wrapped around her waist. Vanilla and amber filled her nostrils as curly brown hair came into view.

“Edoardo?” She whispered.

He nuzzled a kiss into her neck before turning her by the waist, pulling on her belt loops to turn her in his arms. She looked up at him, his brown eyes crinkled as he smiled down at her surprised expression. He wasn’t supposed to be getting home until later, when she picked him up from the airport.

“Hi.” He said with a breathy laugh, clearly amused.

“You weren’t…I mean you were getting here later…” Ele tried.

She was struggling to comprehend how exactly this was happening. Finally, she gave up, and pulling his face towards her, kissed him instead. When she pulled away, she couldn’t help but laugh a little at how shocked Edoardo now looked, all starry eyed.

“I should go away more often.”

“Don’t you dare.” She teased.

Edo gave her a smirk, the clear bite to the words suggesting that there was more truth to them than she wanted to admit. Ele just gave him an eye roll and pulled away a little, Edo catching her again by the belt loops to hold her in place. She lifted her hands to his chest to push away, but instead pulled lightly on the strings of his dark hoodie, soft and frayed.

“I may have lied about my flight arrival time.”

“Why?”

“So I could see your face when I surprised you.”

“Was it worth it?”

“Absolutely.” He said, leaning in and kissing her again.

She felt something inside of her click into place with the kiss, like a breath she was holding without realizing it was finally being released. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. Even as their lips parted, she kept her arms in place, letting their foreheads rest together.

“I missed you.” She whispered, looking from the floor to his eyes, like melted chocolate gazing back at her. It was

“I missed you too.” He said back, smiling again.

“Not too much I hope. I know how much you were looking forward to time with your friends.”

“We had fun. They did tease me a little though.”

Ele pulled away from him, but only slightly, to get a better look at him.

“Why?”

“Because they think I’m whipped.”

“Hmm.” Ele hummed, not wanting to get worked up over the stupidity of the word. That was a discussion to be had later with Eva and the rest of the girls.

“I told them that they just don’t know what it’s like to be in love.” Edo said, so matter of fact. Not a declaration, although he’d told her he loved her countless times now. No, this was just the stating of a fact. Edoardo had brown hair. Edoardo had a leather coat. Edoardo was in love with Eleonora.  

“How’d you get home?” She asked, trying to play it cool while her heart did flip flops in her chest.

“Filippo.” Edo said with a sly smile.

“My brother kept a secret?” Ele said, voice laced in shock.

“I had to ask very nicely.”

“What did you promise him?”

“Nothing!” Edo said, although by the slight smirk on his face, Ele knew he was lying. She gave him a look.

“Okay, you and I are going on a date tomorrow night and I’m not allowed to let you go home after.”

“Why?” Ele said, before thinking through her brother’s logic. He must have a boy coming over and didn’t want Eleonora getting in the way. Typical Filippo. Edo gave her another sly smile.

“Never mind. I get it.” Ele said, rolling her eyes.

“I didn’t think it was a bad trade.” Edo said, smiling again before kissing her lightly on the forehead.

She released her arms from around his neck, letting them wrap around his waist instead. She ran her fingers lightly up and down his spine, feeling his warmth through the thick material of his sweatshirt.

“But you had to drive all the way home from the airport with my brother.”

Edo’s head rolled back as he laughed, the sound echoing through the greenhouse. In truth, she knew that Fili and Edo had grown fond of each other over the last eight months of their relationship. On more than one occasion, she’d even found them hanging out before she’d gotten home from school for the day.

She watched him laugh, his brown curls bouncing on his forehead, his eyes closed and his grin wide. She couldn’t help but laugh too, her mouth wide as she leaned into his chest, careful not to smear her red lipstick on his chest. She held him close, listening to the sound of his laughter through his chest. She took in a deep breath, taking in the familiar scent of vanilla and amber. The smell of home.  


	7. Happy Valentine's Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eva & Gio, Ele & Edo and Marti & Nico celebrate Valentine's Day

Eva pulled open the bag, pink tissue paper spilling onto the couch. Gio sat across from her, smiling. Her gift to him, the latest FIFA game and the promise that she’d play it with him, sat unwrapped on the coffee table.  She looked up at him before she reached in, catching his grin.  

“What?”

“Nothing. You’re just very cute.” He said, as if it was nothing. Eva’s heart did backflips in her chest. 

Trying to ignore the heat rising in her cheeks, she put her focus back on the Valentine’s Day gift in her lap, reaching in and feeling something soft and fluffy. She pulled it out. 

A small koala stuffed animal. She pulled it into her chest, smiling wide. 

“I love it.”

Gio leaned in to kiss her lightly and then sat back again.

“There’s more.” He said, gesturing to the bag. 

She eyed him suspiciously, but reached into the bag again. At the bottom was a small jewelry box, the red leather case soft in her hands. Gently, she lifted the case open to reveal a delicate silver locket. Gio was beaming at her when she looked at him. 

“Do you like it?”

She didn’t bother to answer him, closing the distance between them so she could kiss him again. Sitting back, she looked at the locket again, gently prying it from the box. She handed it to Gio and wordlessly turned away from him, lifting her messy red hair so he could put it on her. 

She felt him shift on the couch, his knee grazing her hip as he got closer. His arms came into view as he brought the necklace around her neck. An involuntary shiver ran up her spine as Gio’s fingers brushed her shoulder blades for a moment after he finished getting the necklace in place. She pulled away from him only to swing herself around so she could crawl into his lap, straddling him so she could kiss him properly. 

They fell into a content silence, kissing as long as they could before they needed to come back up for air.

Eva thought about how easy this was with Gio. How they could just be so content doing nothing but kissing on her living room couch, happy to just be together. With Fede, Eva always felt like they needed to be out, to be at parties, to be around other people for their relationship to work. When it was just the two of them, it was like they didn’t know how to communicate. With Gio, it was so easy to go from making out one moment to talking about something serious the next. Maybe because she and Gio were friends first, and that foundation never went away, even after everything they’d gone through. 

She rested her forehead against Gio’s now, running the pads of her thumbs across his cheeks while she stared into his big blue eyes.

“Happy Valentine’s Day.” She whispered, pressed to close to see his mouth curve into a smile but able to see it in the way his eyes crinkled.

“Happy Valentine’s Day.” He whispered back and now it was Eva who was smiling. 

 

* * *

Eleonora watched the candle flames dance across Edo’s face, his white button up almost cream in the warm, low light of their favorite restaurant. He held her hand, resting their interlocked fingers on the tabletop. He was smiling as he told her a story about getting out of whatever trouble he and Nico had gotten themselves into this week in class. 

“I feel bad for your professor. Can’t you leave the poor woman alone?”

“We didn’t mean to!”

“You never do.” She chided with a laugh. Edo laughed too and Ele felt her chest flutter at the sound. 

Dinner finished, they walked towards Edo’s car, parked down the street. It was chilly, but not terribly cold and with Edoardo’s arm around her, she was actually warm. When they got to Edo’s car, Ele pulled him further. 

“Where are we going?”

“Not sure.” Ele said, “I’m just not ready to go home yet.”

Edoardo didn’t even hesitate, following her lead as they continued down the street, the city twinkling around them under the full moon. Ele could feel the magic of the holiday in the streets tonight, a warm sensation that had settled over the ancient city as couples passed with hands interlocked or kissed against buildings. Ele moved closer into Edo’s side.  

Before now, Ele had never understood this holiday, chalking it up as another made up celebration that she wanted no part of. But now...well there were a lot of things Eleonora hadn’t understood before Edoardo. 

She watched him now, eyes glistening in the moonlight as she told him about Filippo’s latest antics and how he’d had to buy her another house plant when he nearly burned down the kitchen. 

It was only when they reached the river that Ele realized how far they had walked. But she didn’t mind. She leaned on the railing, looking down at the water, Edo pressed against her side. 

“I love you.” He said. 

She turned to him, smiling wide and bright. 

“I love you too.”

He leaned in, kissing her, one hand on her waist to pull her closer and the other on her jaw, his thumb resting on her cheek. Ele wrapped both arms around his neck, pulling him down to compensate for their height difference. 

When they finally pulled away, Eleonora laughed a little at the red stains her lipstick had left around Edo’s lips. He must have realized why she was laughing and groaned. Ele reached into her purse, pulling out the makeup wipes she kept on hand for just this occasion. 

She raised her hand to Edo’s face, smiling as he moved to kiss her wrist. She tried to give him a stern look, but knew that she was much too fond of him to come off as anything but amused. Once he’d stopped moving, Ele made quick work of wiping at the red splotches, clearing Edo’s face and bringing it back to his usual sun-kissed complexion. Once she’d finished, she wiped her own face, dabbing at her lips until the wipe came back a faint pink instead of vivid red. 

“Now you’re safe again.” Edo said, smiling. As if to prove his point, he pulled her in for another kiss. When he pulled away, Ele couldn’t help but shiver, both from the intensity of his kiss and the breeze that had picked up and now cut through her coat. 

“Let’s go home.” He said, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulder and rubbing his hand up and down her arm for extra warmth. She wrapped her arm around his waist, sinking into his side, becoming another love drunk couple on the quiet sidewalk.

 

* * *

Marti carefully set the breakfast tray on Nico’s desk, trying not to wake his sleeping boyfriend. 

“Ciao.” He heard Nico's voice say from the bed, soft but alert. He must have been awake for a few minutes already. 

Marti happily climbed onto the covers, laying his head on Nico’s pillow. Nico turned, eyes still closed, but close enough that their noses brushed. Marti traced his cheek bone with his finger, watching his dark eyes flutter open. He smiled at Marti, that devilish grin that still made Marti’s heart stop in his chest. 

“Ciao.” Marti whispered. 

They stayed like that for a few minutes, quietly appreciating each other’s company. Nico had pulled his arms out from beneath the covers so he could gently work his fingers through Marti’s red curls. 

“Happy Valentine’s Day.” Marti said finally.

Nico frowned a little, averting his gaze from Marti’s eyes to his hair. 

“It’s February 15th Marti.” He said, and Marti could hear the disappointment in his voice. He knew that Nico felt bad about messing up their Valentine’s Day plans. Marti stroked his cheek encouragingly.

“It’s only 8. That means it’s still February 14th somewhere in the world.” Marti assured him.

“Like where?”

“Los Angeles, California.” Marti said. 

He’d looked it up, doing the math just so he could see the grin that was spreading across Nico’s face now. Nico looked at him again. Marti leaned in, kissing him softly. Nico kissed him for a moment before pulling away.

“I haven’t brushed my teeth yet.”

Marti just shrugged. He didn’t really care but made a show of considering their options.

“Nose kisses only then.” He offered. 

Nico smiled again and Marti swore that it would be Nico and that smile that killed him. Nico leaned in, kissing Marti on the nose and Marti repeated the gesture. They went back and forth like that until they were laughing too hard to continue. Awake now, Nico pulled himself out of bed, getting a whine from Martino. Nico just gave him a little head bobble.

“I’m going to brush my teeth so I can kiss you properly idiot.”

Marti smiled up at him and watched as Nico walked into the bathroom connected to his bedroom, still pink from when this place had belonged to his grandparents. They hadn’t bothered to change it when Nico moved in, getting used to the pink floral wallpaper like they’d gotten used to all of the other eccentricities about the old apartment. 

“I brought tea and biscuits in if you’re hungry.”

“I’ll have them in a little bit.” Nico promised.

Marti watched him through the open door, Nico’s lean muscles moving easily across his exposed back as he found his toothbrush next to Marti’s in the holder. 

“How did I get such a hot boyfriend?”

That got a muffled laugh from Nico, mouth now full of toothpaste. He rinsed his mouth and met Marti’s gaze in the mirror, eyes brighter now than when he’d first gotten up.

“I could ask the same thing.”

He turned around, closing the distance between the bathroom and the bed and crawling onto Marti’s lap, straddling him. Nico grabbed his face with both hands and pulled him into a deep kiss. When he pulled away, he rested his forehead on Marti’s. 

“Happy Valentine’s Day Marti.”

  
  



End file.
